Electric cars may be coming of age, but the deep-rooted fears of the motoring public are taking a little longer to dispel.

The old image of the electric milk float may have gone, but “range anxiety” hasn’t

There are now more than 25 pure electric or plug-in hybrid cars and vans, but none stands out quite as much as the Tesla, brainchild of the PayPal founder Elon Musk.

Earlier this month I put a Tesla Model S 100D through its paces. And the first question to be answered was range.

Luggage and Christmas presents vanished into the huge boot for a trip from Devon to Norfolk.

The Tesla has all-wheel-drive from two electric motors and (in this case) a 100 kWh 350 volt lithium-ion battery, all mounted along the chassis.

This low centre of gravity configuration not only gives superb road-holding, but leaves a surprising amount of room up top.

Interior of the Tesla Model S

The Model S has room for five adults, and you can add rear-facing seats in the enormous boot for two children.

The Model S is a sporty car, but if your physique is more low-slung than it used to be you will not struggle to get in and out.

A new feature allows you to programme an “Easy Entry” position for the steering wheel and driver’s seat. A touch of the brake pedal, and the seats glide into drive position.

This new feature was rolled out to all Teslas a few weeks ago. The company installs software upgrades automatically and for free over the internet.

The 100D has a nominal range of 393 miles, but get up to motorway speeds, switch on the heating and wipers and link to Spotify through the 17-inch touchscreen display, and you can knock several tens of miles off that.

Even so, a single stop at one of the network of Tesla superchargers would have been easily enough for my 305-mile journey.

The company has installed superchargers around the country, where Tesla drivers can pump up their batteries to 80% capacity in just 40 minutes.

In a journey of more than five hours, a 40-minute stop is a must anyway.

Tesla superchargers at Hopwood Park services on the M42

The Tesla’s big screen shows a map with all the supercharger stops marked, along with the number of chargers and how many are in use at any time.

You can ask the car’s navigation system to work how and when to stop, which takes away most of any residual anxiety.

I glided up the M5 and pulled in at Hopwood Park services on the M42.

The Tesla superchargers are free for the first roughly 1,000 miles a year, with a small fee after that, which takes a lot of sting out of the car’s starting price of £86,200. West of Bristol, there are already superchargers at Darts Farm, near Exeter, and the Arundell Arms off the A30 near Launceston.

Tesla owners can also use any regular charge points and their own domestic power supply, though of course you will have to pay.

The Tesla Model S pictured on Dartmoor

Government plug-in grants offer up to £4,500 off the price of an electric car.

Other benefits include exemption from the London Congestion Charge and free parking in many areas.

Electric cars require less maintenance compared to petrol or diesel cars, and the Tesla’s regenerative braking system even reduces wear on the brakes.

The price tag puts the Tesla squarely in the luxury car bracket, though the finish is perhaps a little less luxurious than similarly priced cars such as the BMW 740Le.

Most of the car’s functions, navigation and entertainment are controlled through a 17-inch screen on the centre console.

I was worried that this might be distracting, but found the ordinary dashboard display, complete with satnav, plus voice recognition and steering column controls, were enough to keep my eyes on the road.

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The satnav did lead me astray all by itself, though, sending us on a lengthy loop around the M6/M1 junction that could have lasted until the battery ran out if simple human commonsense hadn’t kicked in.

The day of the return trip dawned with a hard frost. I fired up the Tesla app on my phone and turned on the car’s heating and de-icer. Ten minutes later the car was toasty and frost-free.

But I have left the best to last.

Eco-friendliness is all well and good.

The medical grade cabin air filter will keep your lungs pollution free, which is no bad thing.

These cars give us a glimpse of motoring’s future, fitted with hardware to allow them to be self-driving, when that’s allowed.

Already you can set cruise control to maintain a set spacing on the motorway, and the car will slow down and speed up by itself, or summon the car remotely.

But let’s talk about acceleration.

Ernie on his electric milk float had no inkling of the potential of the beast he sat on. Electric motors deliver instant torque, and that translates into astonishing acceleration.

Depending on the model, the Tesla does 0-60mph in anywhere between 4 and 2.5 seconds.

Allegedly. But I was too busy hanging on for dear life to use a stopwatch – or to notice the lack of engine roar that petrol heads crave.